u/CrispySpicyTaters

Bella got her new ride yesterday. We went on a great 1.5 hour stroll.

Hi everyone,

I have a couple concerns that I would appreciate opinions on. Please bear with me.

My pup, Bella is 14 years old (15 y/o in August) and she is a Lab Cross.

Concern # 1:

Bella has had bad pancreatitis in the past, which limits food that I can put her on but I finally found food that doesn't make her sick! - Hills Science Diet: Perfect Weight.

Recently, she has started to eat less mostly in the morning. We had a vet appointment yesterday and she has lost 4lbs since February (40lb down to 36lb). The vet is concerned and suggested getting an ultrasound to see if there are any tumors or gull bladder stones. I'm hesitant because I don't want to have her sedated. Basically my fear is she won't wake up...

She also brought up palliative care, but honestly Bella is very clearly still a happy girl; she wants to play, go for walks, and is still as cuddly as ever.

Concern # 2:

Bella has bad arthritis in her front right leg (and I'm almost positive she has it in her back end as well). I want to make sure she is as comfortable as possible. She is currently on Galliprant, Gabapentin, and Cartrophen, and I'm going to be starting her on low dose ketamine injections next week. I previously tried Librela with no luck.

The arthritis has been causing knuckling in her front right paw for a while now. Her nails on that paw have started getting very short due to dragging her paw. One nail quick started bleeding yesterday during our adventure home from the vet, then again today during a short walk.

I'm wondering what I can do to prevent the quick bleeding going forward? I have quick-stop but I don't know if that will help long term?

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I'd greatly appreciate any input from you folks. My pup means the world to me and I want to make sure she's as comfortable as possible.

Photos of my best friend are attached. I includes her front paws and her side profile to give an idea of her current weight.